Telenor reported first-quarter revenues of NOK 24.1 billion, up from NOK 22.3 billion a year earlier and representing organic growth of 7 percent. The Asian operations led the increase with subscriber and data services growth; overall Telenor added 9 million mobile subscribers in the quarter, of which more than half came from India. EBITDA before one-time items rose to NOK 7.4 billion from NOK 7.2 billion a year ago, while the EBITDA margin fell to 30.5 percent from 32.0. The result was affected by restructuring charges in Norway, where Telenor said price and competitive pressures mean cost reductions are needed. Net profit more than doubled to NOK 2.8 billion from NOK 1.0 billion, thanks to NOK 1.1 billion in profits from Vimpelcom. Operating cash flow rose to NOK 5 billion from 4.8 billion a year earlier, and capex increased to NOK 2.6 billion from NOK 2.4 billion. Telenor maintained its outlook for over 5 percent organic revenue growth this year, an adjusted EBITDA margin of around 31 percent, and capex excluding spectrum and licences at 12-13 percent of sales. Uninor in India is expected to contribute an EBITDA loss of around NOK 4 billion and capital expenditure of NOK 1.0–1.5 billion.
